As part of our “Garrison Talks at the JCC” event series, teachers and authors Sharon Salzberg and Rev. angel Kyodo williams recently discussed ways to bridge spiritual practice and social activism. Some of the key questions explored: Does spiritual practice require that we love everyone? Does being happy mean that we avoid conflict? How can we speak differently about spiritual practice and…
Leading up to Joanna Macy’s 2016 retreat “Rainer Maria Rilke and the Force of the Storm,” exploring the work of Rainer Maria Rilke in the context of her well-know experiential seminar called “The Work That Reconnects,” journalist Andrew Revkin spoke with Macy about what Rilke has to offer those working on behalf of the planet and the increasing need to…
This post is in honor of World Humanitarian Day 2016. Four years ago, I was one year into my humanitarian aid mission in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Picture this: My chest is tight, my hands are jittery, and my stomach is in knots. I have just returned from my last intended “R&R” and can already feel my resistance to stress evaporating. The…
One of the reasons that teachers experience so much stress at work is that they haven’t developed the social and emotional skills that are required to work under the conditions that they’re faced with. To address this need, a team at the Garrison Institute created the CARE for Teachers program (Cultivating Awareness and Resilience in Education). We recently held our Tenth Annual…
I have a little theory about enlightenment. If you were all alone in an alternate universe (population: you), you could get enlightened quickly, if you set your intention. Your life would be greatly simplified. There would be no border disputes, no angry divorces, no revenge narratives starring Clint Eastwood. Facebook would be extremely boring, with a total of 0 friends…
Welcome to episode six of the Climate, Mind and Behavior Podcast. Each episode, we’ll explore groundbreaking intersections between climate change, resilience, contemplative practice and human behavior. Piya Macliing Malayao is the 27-year-old Secretary General of Katribu, a national alliance of Indigenous Peoples in the Philippines. She’s also the Land is Life Regional Coordinator for South Asia and the Pacific. Land is…
In a recent “Garrison Talks at the JCC” event in New York City, “Bridging Spirituality and Activism,” Zen teacher angel Kyodo williams and meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg discussed challenging questions about the relationship between personal and social transformation. How do racism and privilege prevent our collective awakening? How can each one of us affect the shortcomings not only of our own minds but…
Alison Moritsugu is an artist whose work explores how our idealized images of the natural world shape our concepts about it. In her log paintings, she paints idyllic landscapes in the Hudson River School style on the cross sections of trees, which, as she notes on her website, complicates the image because “any sense of nostalgia or celebration of nature…